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Cats Can Be Wrangled
Article By: Glenn Redmond
It has been said, "dogs have owners, but cats have
staff."
Anyone that shares their life with our feline friends
knows commanding a cat to do anything can be an exercise
in futility. I continually see owners try everything from
begging, yelling, and even punishment to try to achieve
certain behaviours from their cats, only to be met with
looks of boredom, distain, and total indifference.
Frustrated owners have complained that their cats cannot
learn or be trained. This, however, is far from the truth.
Cats are astute animals that can be trained not only to
obey basic behaviours, but also to perform elaborate tricks.
While it would be unrealistic to expect Lassie-like behaviours
or for your newspaper to be fetched every evening, tapping
into your cat's intelligence will not only increase your
cat's trust in you, but also strengthen the human-cat
bond.
Getting Started
Remember these basic tips when training your cat.
1. Speak in a normal tone with all requests to your cat.
Cats have hearing much more acute than ours, but because
of their indifference, we often mistakenly feel they cannot
hear us, and have a tendency to raise our voices. Nothing
will get your cat running the other way more than a raised
voice.
2. Be consistent. Do not say "sit" one time
in teaching a behavior and "sit down" the next.
This will only confuse your feline student and lead to
frustration for both parties.
3. Motivation. Find out what your cats favourite treat
is and only give this treat while training. Most cats
love food and this is a great tool to use for motivation
to learn.
4. Punishment. Do not even let it cross your mind to punish
your cat in anyway. They will physically extricate themselves
from the proceedings, and if they cannot you may become
acquainted with the mini-lion's aggressive response.
5. Timing is everything. Reward your cat immediately after
they perform the behaviour. A second or two after is much
too late.
6. Empty Tummies. Do not attempt training after a meal.
If your cat is in the process of grooming after a mighty
feast, the desire to work with you will be non-existent.
Teaching "Sit"
"Sit" is probably the easiest to teach. Take
your cat's favourite treat holding it between your thumb
and forefinger.
Let your cat smell the food and slowly lift the treat
up as you say the word "sit". As soon as your
cat assumes the sit position, give the food and praise
him gently. Be careful not to raise the food too high,
as this will only make your cat raise its front paws in
an attempt to get the food.
As your cat becomes proficient at this exercise, remove
the food from your hand. Ask your cat to "sit"
without seeing the food, remembering to produce the food
immediately upon compliance.
Teaching "Come"
I have found the best way to teach this behaviour is
with the aid of a clicker. Most pet stores will carry
them with a price tag of around $5.
In the beginning, have your cat next to you and click
once, immediately throwing a treat on the floor next to
your cat. Over a few sessions do this approximately 50-60
times. As the cat gets used to the sound, remove yourself
to another room and click once always rewarding your cat
with a treat and praise when they come running. Change
your position in the house as your cat improves. That
is, cat upstairs and you downstairs. Over time, this will
be the most exciting sound to your cat, ensuring that
they are only one click away.
Teaching "Off"
Start with your cat on top of an object that you do not
mind them being on in the first place. Show him a treat,
saying the word "off" as you bring your hand
down towards the floor.
If your cat jumps off, reward immediately with the treat
and praise. If your cat hesitates at the beginning, gently
guide them with your hand behind their rumps. Remember
not too push too hard or you will be met with resistance.
As your cat gets good at this behavior, say the word
"off" without moving your hand very much at
all, remembering to reward every time your cat complies
with your request.
Eventually the word itself, without any hand movement,
should invoke the behaviour and "voila." Your
teaching of this word is complete.
These simple exercises are only the basics of what your
cat can learn. Use your imagination, be creative and -
most of all - have fun.
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